Chané Laforet
'''Chané Laforet' (シャーネ・ラフォレット Shāne Raforetto) is the mute eldest daughter of Huey Laforet and Renee Parmedes Branvillier and the older sister of Leeza Laforet. Chané participates in the Lemures' hijacking of the Flying Pussyfoot at the end of December 1931 with the aim of freeing Huey from prison, though she does not approve of taking hostages. In the wake of the plan's failure, she joins Jacuzzi's Gang and grows to deeply care for her new companions, fighting for them as fiercely as she does for her father. Shortly after reuniting with Huey in 1935, Chané meets Leeza for the first time—the younger sister she never knew she had. In February, on Huey's orders, the sisters patrol the three day party at Ra's Lance while he prepares to execute an experiment intended to affect a large swatch of the New York population. During the mission, Chané seeks to kill Nader Schasschule in the hope that doing so will return her to being an emotionless tool. Chané eventually marries and starts a family with Felix Walken, whom she first met when he was still "Claire Stanfield." Both of them are alive and in their nineties in August 2002, by which time they have two teenaged great-grandchildren. Appearance Chané is a beautiful pale-skinned young woman who bears a striking resemblance to Huey Laforet (Chané's father) as she inherited his black hair, golden eyes and lean build; but, her features are more angular than or sister and her muscles more pronounced. During her childhood, she kept her hair a little longer than shoulder length with bangs; as a young adult, she keeps her hair short like her father's and her bangs splayed on both sides. Chané often wears a black Spanish-styled spaghetti-strap dress with a small black rose on the left strap, long black gloves and ankle-length black boots. When she is mistakenly kidnapped by Graham Specter in January 1932, she is wearing a custom white dress that Claire gifted her and matching boots. Personality As Huey's guinea pig from birth and his daughter—being herself to be his 'only family' until 1935—Chané is devoted to him and wishes to protect him despite knowing he is an immortal. Her devotion is tantamount to fanaticism throughout her childhood and into her early adulthood; for much of her young life she sees herself as and is content to be a mere tool for her father to use, never seeking or craving his affection as her younger sister Leeza will later do. Chané's encounters with Ladd Russo and Claire Stanfield during the Flying Pussyfoot incident leave her off-kilter, but it is in joining Jacuzzi's Gang and getting to know Claire that she begins changing as a person—in living apart from her father, her world expands beyond him: for the first time, here is a man who sincerely loves her; for the first time, she is among people who offer her kindness and friendship without expecting anything return; for the first time, she among friends who care about her for her sake and not as a means to her father. While Huey is never far from Chané's mind over the next few years, she grows to love and care for her friends as fiercely as she cares for Huey and she grows as an individual. Her devotion begins losing its fanatical edge: although she had objected to taking hostages during the Flying Pussyfoot hijacking, she at that point in time was still able to kill without emotion or hesitation for her father's sake; in going three years without killing anyone and coming to trust in Claire and her friends, she finds she is no longer the 'emotionless tool' she once was. As Chané still considers herself lacking true purpose without Huey and worthless if she cannot be useful to him, she does not consider this character growth to be positive growth; rather, she believes she has grown soft and weak. Early 1935 finds her in inner turmoil over how dull her "fangs" have become, full of self-doubt over whether she will be able to kill (or whether she will be killed by) Ladd Russo and filled with chagrin that she is coming to 'rely' on Claire (and that she likes trusting in him). Huey's return in the midst of her internal conflict fills her with joy, but fuels her determination to regress as a human and return to being the emotionless tool she believes her father needs her to be. Chané usually communicates via the written word or through gestures, having never learned sign language. When acting as Huey's silent, watchful tool, her countenance is expressionless and indifferent—something which often led others to perceive her as frigid or distant in the years leading up to 1931; while many still find her 'hard to read' or her changes in expression exceptionally subtle, she has become more expressive away from Huey and more of a brooder. She is at her most outwardly emotive when alone; in 1935 she paces to and fro in her apartment, stabs her table in irritation (an apparent longstanding habit), and is visibly weary and melancholic in a way she would never be with another person. Chané is fiercely loyal and fiercely protective of the people she cares for, willing to sacrifice herself and more than herself for their sake. One cannot know to what extent this is in her nature and to what extent it is the result of her calculated upbringing, though her upbringing is entirely responsible for warping her sense of purpose and self-worth: for most of her life, her purpose *in life* was not merely to be useful to just anyone; her sole purpose in life was Huey, the only person for whom her life had any value, and she realized she was most valuable to him as a tool rather than a daughter. For most of her life, she has measured her worth in terms of how useful she can be to Huey specifically. While Jacuzzi's gang and Claire have proved to her that relationships are not inherently utilitarian—while she knows they value her for who she is, and loves them for it—by 1935 she still cannot value herself in the same way; her desire to protect her friends is no doubt genuine, but it stems from her deeply-rooted need to be useful to those she cares for and need for a purpose in Huey's absence. Her turmoil in 1935 is not only incited by her fear of being unneeded by Huey, it is co-morbid with a terrifying sense that she is losing her very identity. Chronology Youth Shortly after Chané's birth, Huey informs Renee that he will take full custody of their daughter as he believes Renee unfit to raise her. Renee only mildly resists before allowing Huey to take the infant she herself named, and Huey ensures Chané's upbringing thenceforth is an abnormal one. At some point in 1922, while out on a stroll together, Huey declares he will share with Chané certain knowledge that only he knows: knowledge that she cannot use for herself or share with anyone else. Once she promises to keep the knowledge secret, he prepares to show her 'all that is forbidden'—that of his goal, and the world as he perceives it. Before he does, he acknowledges that he is essentially forcing her to carry a burden and asks if she would like anything in return. Whatever she wishes, he will grant it. Chané requests that Huey take her voice away from her, so that she will be able to protect his secret all the better. Privately surprised by the request, Huey praises Chané for being a good child and assures her that fulfilling her request will be a simple matter indeed. How and when he takes away her voice is unclear. A few years later, Huey and Chané arrive in New York City either in August 1925 or a preceding month in search of a child named Claire Stanfield, whose genius Huey has heard rumors of. They learn that Claire has left the city by the the time they arrive—however, Huey soon learns of another child genius called Tock Jefferson and decides to spend a month observing the twelve-year-old from afar. When Tock runs away from home in September, Huey intercepts him at the New York docks while Chané remains on guard and out of sight. From the shadows, she watches Huey introduce himself to Tock and watches him demonstrate his immortality via immolating his hand in his lantern. Tock remains relatively calm; impressed by his reaction, Huey gives Chané permission to leave since Tock apparently does not intend to flee. Chané nods and vanishes, sprinting soundlessly into the darkness of night. 1931 Before the end of 1931, Huey is arrested on charges of conspiring against the government and taken to New York for questioning. In response, Goose Perkins, leader of the Lemures—a militaristic faction under Huey's command—begins formulating plans to free Huey from prison, though Huey has not ordered any such action be taken. On December 29, 1931 around noon, Goose has Chané and fifty other Lemures gather for a meeting in an abandoned factory a few dozen miles south from Chicago. Nader Schasschule attempts to stage a coup against Goose during the meeting and fails: not only are Nader's fellow traitors gunned down by their former comrades, Chané severs Nader's right hand with a knife and moves to kill him—though Goose stops her in favor of tying Nader up and, once Chané and the Lemures are driving away from the factory, having Spike shoot explosives from afar to destroy the factory with Nader still inside it. The following late afternoon of December 30, Chané and the surviving thirty Lemures board the Flying Pussyfoot at Chicago's Union Station, passing themselves off as the 'Chicago Paysage Philharmonic' and using their instrument cases to smuggle weapons and ammunition into a freight hold. Their plan: to hijack the Flying Pussyfoot and take the passengers hostage while Serges' team negotiates for Huey's release from prison. As they will be negotiating with Senator Manfred Beriam specifically, Goose's plan includes targeting the passengers Natalie and Mary Beriam—Beriam's wife and daughter—as special hostages. Though Chané does not approve of the terrorists' methods, and though she knows the Lemures do not value her or her father beyond obtaining her father's immortality, her desire to free her father at all costs is motivation enough for her to participate in the plan and see how much the Lemures can actually accomplish. Moreover, she worries that an immortal said to work for the Bureau of Investigation might have the opportunity to devour Huey while he is the "nation's prisoner." She thus joins Goose and other Lemures in first class while their comrades spread throughout second and third class, and the train departs without incident. The first several hours of the journey pass uneventfully, and it is well into evening when their allied Lemur conductor performs a scheduled light signal that doubles as their signal to start the hijacking. Chané remains in First Class while Goose sends three men to seize control of the dining car; after some time passes, one of the men returns with a bleeding gunshot wound and news of men in white suits who obstructed their operation. Goose orders a subordinate to briefly call back all available men, and soon leaves for the dining car himself with several comrades following. During Goose's absence, Chané decides to go hunt some White Suits and leaves the room after helping herself to a few weapons. Upon reaching one of the second-class carriages, she comes across a White Suit accosting Mary Beriam at a janitor's closet; she kills the White Suit and escorts Mary to First Class, where Mary's hands are bound before she is reunited with her mother. Goose informs Natalie of their plans and her expected cooperation before leaving the room; having stayed behind, Chané looks away from Natalie's helpless acceptance of her situation. Chané soon leaves the room to stand guard on the roof of a first-class carriage, intending to slaughter any White Suits planning to launch a surprise attack from the rooftops. When two people—Nick and Nice Holystone—do come crawling toward her over the dining car, she quickly determines neither are White Suits but remains on the offense all the same. Moments later, offense turns to eerie alarm at the sight of Ladd Russo—a White Suit dappled in red—standing armed with a rifle behind Nice and Nick. Instinctively, Chané is sure this man is the one who killed two Lemures in the dining car. Ladd takes aim at Chané's chest, rambling about his love for her and his newfound enemies, and shoots; Chané twists aside intending to dodge the bullet, only to accidentally deflect it with her knife's blade. This leads to a brief close-combat fight from which Ladd soon swiftly retreats once Chané procures a larger knife, and she pursues him for several cars before he successfully ducks out of sight near the cars with freight holds. Chané looks for him below before eventually returning to the roof over the conductors' room, intending to survey the area and kill Ladd at the earliest opportunity. When Ladd does pop into view, he greets her by name and rattles off other information he now knows about her and Huey—including that Huey is immortal. The two clash for a second time, and this time their fight briefly comes to a stop when the lamps on either side of their car flash several times; given that both conductors are dead, both Chané and Ladd momentarily wonder who is responsible for the lights. A minute or so passes before Ladd begins trying to nettle Chané in earnest, taunting her opposition to the Lemures' hijacking plan as a fantasy and a weakness. In concluding that he has no interest in killing her, he declares that he will instead kill Huey while she stands witness. Overcome, Chané attempts to charge him—only to find her knives are immobile. Someone has caught the tips of her blades between their fingers: a man drenched in blood, standing in front of her where no one had stood a second before. The 'red shadow' demands she apologize for having grazed his ear when she stabbed her knives through the wall of the conductors' room, only to apologize to her when he realizes she is mute. He then tells the two to continue their fight, glibly remarking he will thereafter kill the survivor. His confident nonchalance earns him Ladd's antagonism; Ladd throws a punch which the red shadow—Claire Stanfield—dodges with ease, and Chané takes the opportunity to execute another knife attack Ladd's way. Claire asks if Ladd was right that neither Chané nor Huey approved of the Lemures' hijacking plan; once Chané indicates the affirmative, he decides to take Chané's side in the fight. He proceeds to face off against Ladd with ease; once Lua Klein struggles over the side of the car to beg Ladd retreat, Claire manipulates them both in such a way that results in Ladd jumping voluntarily from the train with an arm around Lua. Since Claire cannot tell if Ladd survived, he is left to puzzle over how he should help Chané like he told Ladd he would. After confirming Huey is Chané's father, he offers her two choices: hire him as a hitman, or fight him to the death on the spot. After further confirming Huey is immortal and recognizing Chané's distrust toward anyone non-family, he amends the options to three: fighting him to the death; hiring him for a job; or marrying him so they can protect Huey together—though he also suggests Huey adopt him instead if she would prefer. Aware that Chané is overwhelmed and dazed, he assures her his intentions are serious and that he has no reason to steal Huey's secret of immortality when he will never die. Just as Chané finally readies to respond, a bullet pierces her shoulder courtesy of Spike, who sniped her from several cars away. Claire tells her to carve her response into the roof and afterward jump into an upcoming river if she wants to avoid arrest, and remarks on how she left proof of her existence on him before sprinting in Spike's direction. Chané watches him dodge Spike's bullets before brooding over her answer, which she then carves into the roof as asked. Once the train is crossing the bridge, she jumps into the water and manages to cling onto one of numerous floating cargo crates despite her wounded shoulder. Several members of Jacuzzi's Gang fish her out of the river alongside the train's dumped cargo. Chané indicates she will 'join up' with them if they are headed for New York, and thus accompanies them to Fred's Clinic in New York City. Doctor Fred attends to her shoulder wound and her new companions subsequently deliver a report to Jacuzzi Splot. She enters Jacuzzi's room once one of the delinquents summons her; Nice and Nick drop their bowls of stew in shock, but the room's atmosphere remains cheerful in the aftermath of the gang's successful heist. '1932' Several days pass, during which time most of Jacuzzi's gang moves into the Genoard Family's mansion on Millionaires' Row as housekeepers; Chané agrees to live with them, as she had promised to join the gang earlier. On the day Huey has been rescheduled to be transported out of the city in early January, Chané slips on a thin coat to conceal her knives and bandaged shoulder and joins a crowd of rubberneckers at the transportation site intending to somehow rescue her father on her own. As soon as Huey emerges into view, she reaches for her knife—thinking to use it against the officer in front of her—only to hesitate when Huey mouths an instruction to her: "Do not worry," or so she thinks; she has never learned to lip read, and can only tell for certain Huey is unconcerned about his imprisonment. Her hesitation costs her her chance, and she is left to doubt herself as the crowds disperse with Huey's departure. At the sound of approaching footsteps, she whirls and brings her knife to Jacuzzi's throat; though she lowers the knives immediately, she brings one to his throat again as soon as he mentions Huey's name. It is only once Nice arrives does Chané regain a bit of her composure; affirming she has no need to kill the delinquents if they mean Huey no harm, she sheathes her knives and once again wonders why Jacuzzi and Nice are here. Jacuzzi explains they thought she might be related to Huey given their shared surname and thus came looking for her. He enthusiastically seconds Nice's offer of help should Chané need it before panicking at the blood seeping through his own bandages; at Chané's clear puzzlement as to why he would come all this way in such a state, he clarifies they came because they were worried she might try to rescue Huey alone and wanted to help her if that proved to be the case. She remains confused by Jacuzzi's honesty and apparent disregard for his own safety, finding his behavior entirely incongruous with the dishonesty and selfishness of the Lemures. Upon returning to Fred's clinic in the afternoon, Chané reminds Jacuzzi she is one of the terrorists who hijacked the train and asks why he has not turned her into the police—followed by several more questions she wrote on her notepad beforehand. He notes that his gang are 'bad guys' in their own right for having stolen cargo, and remarks that they will not truly know if Chané is 'good' or 'bad' unless they spend time with her—and even if they never know, he feels they can still be friends regardless. Jacuzzi admits he did not think about 'whys' when Chané asks why he wanted to assist her rescue despite the risk, and further admits the gang is not yet familiar enough with the city to guarantee her safety from the cops. As he nervously considers the potential local dangers they will have to contend with, Chané leaves a note on his bed and leaves him to his tearful fretting by exiting the room. Outside, she realizes Jacuzzi's eyes were without deception in the same way the red shadow's eyes were; she resolves to kill the red shadow once he comes for her so she will remained devoted only to Huey. About two or so weeks after the Flying Pussyfoot incident, a package addressed to Chané arrives in the mail for the mansion. Chané opens the package to find an elegant white dress, which confuses her and impresses Jacuzzi and Nice, but the sender's name—the Rail Tracer—freezes both Chané and Jacuzzi in their tracks. She sinks into deep thought over Claire's intentions and how she should react—so deep she does not notice the other delinquents filing into the room—and once she does notice, she is filled with anxiety over having failed to sense so many people come so close to her. At the thought she may have accepted the gang into her world, she criticizes herself for her weakness. As the delinquents encourage her to try the dress on, Chané takes a closer look and realizes several concealed sheathes have been attached to the dress for her benefit. In her renewed bewilderment she ultimately cedes to peer pressure and dons the dress, afterwards taking a stroll outside the mansion for some fresh air while a few delinquents trail her from a distance. The change of scenery fails to keep her from brooding and from her nascent fear, the latter causing her to consider turning herself in just so she can be with Huey again. An automobile comes to a halt a little ways down the street, and from it emerges a wrench-wielding man whose aura reminds Chané of Ladd at once. The man—Graham Specter—knocks the delinquents to the ground with his wrench before ushering Chané into the car; Chané complies only because of the chance Graham and his men are connected to Huey, and Graham and Shaft drive her to an abandoned factory by the waterfront where more members of Graham's gang are idling about. Time passes, sunset eventually giving way to night. Through eavesdropping on the men's conversations, Chané realizes the men have mistaken her for someone named Eve and that they likely have no connection to her father. Determining she no longer has a reason to play captive, she stands, takes out a knife, and launches herself forward to slash at Graham's arm. Graham protects himself with his wrench and stops the knife with a pair of industrial pliers, realizing in turn that she cannot be Eve. Once he has tossed her away, it occurs to her she has been fighting him like she would fight Ladd and rebukes herself. Jacuzzi hobbles into the factory with pleas for the two to stop fighting, and with no money on hand to pay Graham's ransom fee. Instead, he confesses that the Russo Family have a bounty on his head and offers himself up in exchange for Chané's freedom. Chané and Graham are mutually shocked by the selflessness, with Graham in particular so moved that he decides to grant Jacuzzi's request; Chané, instinctively wanting to keep Jacuzzi safe, remains intent on defeating Graham regardless. An explosion blows a hole in a section of the factory wall, heralding the arrival of Nice and a good number of Jacuzzi's gang despite Graham's order for Jacuzzi to come alone. Jacuzzi notices a stranger's voice amidst those of his friends, and the gang members soon single out a certain redhead—Claire—standing by the wall. Recognizing him from his eyes alone, Chané charges toward him and slices her knife toward his neck—only for a storm of conflicting emotions to hold her back. Much to her fear, Claire asks for her hand in marriage with full sincerity. The thought of accepting anyone other than Huey into her world terrifies her, and she unthinkingly lowers her knife the more Claire promises that in entering her world he will expand and protect it, not destroy it. For all that she finds him and Jacuzzi's gang terrifying, she realizes she does not want to lose them just as she does not want to lose her father. Graham impatiently tries to bring them back to task, though he himself is at once distracted when Claire asks if Boss Ladd is the same Ladd who fell off the train. When Claire claims responsibility for Ladd's fall, Graham attacks—and attacks, and attacks for several minutes without once laying a scratch on his foe. Once this becomes apparent to him, he decides that Claire is Ladd's foe to fight and concedes the match, whereupon he invites Jacuzzi to use the factory as he sees fit before he and his gang depart. Neither Chané nor Claire take much notice, as both are already engaged in 'conversation': Claire privately tells Chané his real name, and asks if Chané could someday fall in love with him; she looks away, her cheeks tinged pink. 1933 By September 1933, Chané has long since become a committed member to Jacuzzi's gang and committed to them as friends. One day in the Genoard Family mansion, she sees Tick Jefferson and Maria Barcelito walking through the garden. Thinking that they mean her friends harm, she rushes to the garden and attacks Maria. When she hears Jacuzzi scream, she reenters the manor and witnesses Dallas Genoard regenerating. She is further alarmed when she hears Tim—aka Tock Jefferson—talking about making people immortal. She knows that an increase in immortals will increase the threat of her father being devoured, so she beelines toward Tim to censure him. Adele intercepts with her spear, which cuts Chané's face, and the two proceed to have a stand-off. Chané is present when Dallas casually reveals to Jacuzzi's gang that Huey is in charge of the Larva, and the revelation sends her mind reeling. She considers the possibility that her father might deem Jacuzzi and his gang specimens and wonders if she would honestly be fine with letting her new friends die—or if he told her to kill them herself. At the height of her inner turmoil, Claire enters the room and embraces her, telling her that everything will be fine. Claire furthermore assures her that he will settle things with Ronny Schiatto and make sure that Chané's friends are unharmed—and asks her to also leave her father to him. He adds that he refuses to let her facial cut 'slide', saunters over to Dallas, and intimidates him into confessing what he is hiding. Jacuzzi and his gang leave to talk with Tim, while Chané and Claire head for the abandoned factory the gang has made their hideout. Chané arrives at the abandoned factory just in time to see Maria advancing towards Chané's fellow gang member Fang Lin-Shan, with Tick and Eve nearby. Furious, Chané throws one of her knives at Maria's back. The knife is deflected. The two woman cautiously appraise each other until Claire throws off the tension by greeting Tick, whom he is surprised Luck Gandor would send as a negotiator. Maria asks Chané if she is still prepared to fight, but Claire tells Chané he can handle the situation and then identifies Eve as an acquaintance of Luck and Keith Gandor. Fang introduces her to Claire, and Chané is surprised to learn that Eve is the owner of the mansion in which she and the rest of the gang have been residing. Jacuzzi soon arrives at the factory to inform all present that Dallas and the Larva plan to storm Mist Wall come tomorrow. The next day, Chané, Claire, Tick, Maria, Fang, and Eve head to Mist Wall and wait while Claire attempts to pick the lock of one of the front doors. A woman in a suit whom Chané saw during the kerfuffle at the mansion—Ennis—in the meantime hurries up to the front entrance, kicks down the next door over, and rushes inside. The door Claire was lockpicking opens a moment later, and everyone except for Fang and Eve take the elevator to the Babel Restaurant on the top floor. Shortly after their arrival, Christopher Shaldred arrives via the same elevator and shoots the restaurant manager dead, causing a mass panic where all regular patrons hurry for the exit. Chané subsequently witnesses the restaurant manager regenerate. When Claire and Christopher take their fight 'outside' via the windows, Chané and Hong Chi-Mei follow them onto the pyramid structure without hesitation. There, she and a certain unseen 'Leeza' lend their support to Claire and Christopher respectively—with Chané all the while unaware that Leeza is her sister. During the fight, Claire addresses a dilemma that Chané has been worrying over for some time: if Huey ordered her to kill Claire, would she choose her father or her fiancé? According to Claire, Chané can pick him while still trying to kill him to the best of her ability; that way, she can still follow her orders while Claire survives whatever she throws at him, and they can continue loving each other. An explosion rocks the restaurant; Chané heads down to see if their friends are all right at Claire's urging. When she returns, she 'informs' Claire that Firo Prochainezo and the others are all right. Chi leaves with Christopher—injured in his defeat to Claire—slung over his shoulder, and Claire and Chané soon follow him down into the restaurant. Once inside the elevator, Claire muses over Huey and Nebula and his own lack of context for much of what has just transpired, and then tells Chané he will have a talk with Huey should something strange happen again. 1934 In November 1934, a friend of Jacuzzi's by the name of Miria Harvent comes to stay with the gang at their mansion and spends the first three days of her stay doing nothing but crying. At first, Chané decides to leave Miria alone; though she is vaguely familiar with Miria, as Miria and Isaac have visited Jacuzzi several times in the past, she feels she probably should not involve herself with whatever trouble Miria is in. After those three days, however, Chané overhears Nice telling Jacuzzi that Isaac has apparently been arrested by the police and that no one has since heard any news on his wellbeing. Chané listens for a while longer before heading to Miria's bedroom, where she finds Miria with bloodshot, puffy eyes and asks if Miria is all right. Miria apologies for causing trouble; feeling somewhat endeared toward her on account of Miria so naturally accommodating her medium of communication, Chané confides that her father is also in police custody and that she has not seen him in four years. The two women bond so well that they converse throughout the night, and Miria greets everyone the next day as her 'usual self'. One month later, in December, Chané arrives at Madison Square Park in advance of a planned date with Claire and sits on a bench to wait for him. She swiftly loses herself in thought, recalling her conversation with Miria a month prior and wondering what she should do while her father remains in prison—and considers asking Jacuzzi and company for advice when a flock of birds suddenly appears before her. Although half an hour remains before their agreed-upon time, she looks toward the park entrance hoping that Claire has arrived—only to tense at the sight of a man wearing a blindfold and carrying two staffs heading in her direction. Once he greets her with a sneer, Chané realizes that this man is Spike. Spike says his new master has sent him on an errand: to find Huey's daughter and ask her a few questions. As he talks, she decides to aim for the tendons in his limbs and rushes toward him moments later, withdrawing two knives; a second man abruptly throws her off her trajectory, though she manages to land on her feet. Spike calls his companion Felix Walken, a name that Chané recognizes as Claire's new name—and a name that the man rejects as his, reminding Spike he already sold it. After Spike guffaws at his and Chané's reunion, the Former Felix relays to Chané their master's question: their master wants to know what Huey is planning in New York. Though Chané has no doubts as to the former Felix's strength, she nevertheless decides to try having them divulge their employer's name instead of booking a retreat. Before she can attack, around ten black-clad men approach Spike; one of them tries to inform Spike about something on the radio, but Spike suddenly says he hears one too many pairs of footsteps. Claire smoothly slips out of the group and hugs Chané close, admitting to her he had been in the park all along mooning at her from afar. When Spike demands a name, Claire introduces himself as Felix Walken and Chané's fiancé—and finally remembers Spike as the "sniper who was on that train," evidently impressed that Spike survived being dropped overboard face-first. Spike at once orders the group of men to retreat and does just that, with the others confused but following all the same. The Former Felix intercepts Claire when he tries to give chase, much to Chané's astonishment, and asks Claire where he bought his name from before moving off to rejoin Spike. Chané stops Claire as he tries to stop the Former Felix, and he surrenders upon seeing she is more worried about Jacuzzi's crew than anything else. The couple make their way back to Millionaires' Row, Claire offering her all sorts of speculation and reassurance as they walk through the surrounding rich neighborhood, and upon reaching the Genoard mansion's front entrance both are startled to find the front hall devoid of the usual crowd. Anxiety immediately seizes Chané, so Claire ducks outside to ring the doorbell in case anyone is home. Jon Panel and Fang emerge from the interior to greet them; when Claire asks where the rest of the gang is, the two explain Isaac has been released from prison but that he only has enough money to reach Chicago, so Miria has gone to meet him—and that the rest of the gang went to accompany her. 1935 Expansion needed. Chané reunites with her father in February, and formally meets her sister Leeza for the first time. The two sisters go on patrol together near Ra's Lance that same month. During their patrol Chané spots Nader and attacks him, remembering how he betrayed her father in 1931. Worried that she has grown soft over the past few years, she resolves to kill Nader without any semblance of feeling. Abilities Chané specializes in knives and is one of the most capable combatants in the series, able to go toe-to-toe with powerful fighters along the likes of Ladd Russo, Graham Specter and Maria Barcelito. She is athletic and light on her feet as she is able to fight on top of a moving train with ease, demonstrating impressive reflexes when she dodges Ladd's bullets. Though it is accidental when she blocks one of those bullets with her blade, her unflinching reaction is a testament to her strength as well. Her skills are such that she is personally responsible for numerous White Suit deaths aboard the Flying Pussyfoot, with the Lemures considering her their trump card against the other faction. Relationships Huey Laforet: Huey is Chané's father and, until she is a young woman, the only family she has. Fanatically devoted to him even in childhood, she voluntarily chose to give up her voice for his sake and involved herself in his work from a young age, from recruiting followers to his side to aiding his experiments. She was and is aware that her father considers her a tool, but is content enough to be a tool he can use and wants to protect him regardless. Huey has only ever considered Chané an experiment—albeit a guinea pig that can occasionally surprise him—and does not love her, though he would speak gently to her when she was young. As he never once told Chané he loves her, she is not entirely sure whether the emotions she comes to feel for Claire and Jacuzzi's gang—the same emotions she feels for Huey—are indeed love. Chané's reunion with Huey in 1935 leaves her acutely aware that she has changed since they last spoke, no longer the emotionless, 'flawless' pawn her father needs her to be. The thought of losing her edge fills her with dread, and she resolves to return to the way she was before their separation. Leeza Laforet: Leeza is Chané's younger sister. Chané had no idea Leeza existed until (formally) meeting her for the first time in 1935, whereupon they are assigned to patrol Ra's Lance together and Leeza temporarily stays at her apartment. Although Chané is uncertain how to act around, relate to, talk to, and feel about her newfound sister, she does not close herself off; when Leeza is shaking with fear, she is concerned enough to ask what is wrong. When Leeza tells Huey about her encounter with Chané in 1933, her attitude is competitive if not jealous; she is eager to insist that she is stronger than Chané and could kill her if Huey ordered it, and asks Huey which daughter is more important to him. Her perceived 'rivalry' with Chané has faded a bit by the time they formally meet in 1935, though she is not entirely happy to have to patrol with her sister, and in coming to know Chané she is far less antagonistic toward her than she would have been in 1933—even going so far as to call Chané 'sis'. While both are unsure of themselves and how to best connect, both sisters are at least making an effort to do so. Felix Walken/Claire Stanfield: Chané is initially bewildered by Claire on the Flying Pussyfoot, overwhelmed by his marriage proposal, self-confidence and intensity, but still asks him to find her in Manhattan. Once in Manhattan, however, she decides to kill him when he finds her; he is a threat to Huey not only in skill but through her, and she does not want her devotion to Huey to waver. When they do reunite, whereupon Claire proposes to her again, it is ultimately Claire's sincerity that sways her. He is sincere in his love for her, sincere in his abilities, and when he says he will expand her world—not destroy it—she finds it impossible not to believe him. They begin courting soon after. While Claire is serious about his intention to love Chané, he never imposes his will or forces her to do what she is not ready or yet willing to do; he assures her they can "start as friends" if she wants. Furthermore, he never makes her choose between him and Huey—a potential dilemma which troubles her greatly—and in fact assures her that she will never have to choose.Though she cannot speak, he can 'read' her well and is attuned to her thoughts and feelings—and thus is able to respect them. Claire fully believes in Chané's skill; when he joins her in fighting, it is not because he believes her incapable, but that he simply wants to fight alongside her. However, as much as being with him gives her joy, Chané in 1935 fears that her trust in Claire will become reliance on him—and she is determined to "regain her fangs" so she can face Claire as an equal once more. She is the only person allowed to 'call' him Claire after he changes his name to Felix Walken, as he considers 'Claire' the name of his soul. They are still married as of 2002, with at least two great-grandchildren to their name. Renee Parmedes Branvillier: Renee is Chané's mother by blood, though Chané has never met her; Renee relinquished custody of Chané to Huey shortly after Chané's birth, and had no part in her life since then. In 1935, however, Renee travels to New York intending to 'reclaim' Chané for her experiments—claiming that Huey once promised to give her one of their daughters. Should Claire do a job for her, she says she will give up trying to collect Chané. The Lemures: Despite being a member of the Lemures, Chané has no affection for her comrades nor the majority for her. She is devoted to Huey and takes orders only from him, whereas most of the Lemures care only about Huey's immortality, and the only true respect they have for her is her combat prowess. When Goose devises a plan to 'get rid' of Chané during the hijacking plot due to her being an obstacle, the lack of pushback is telling as to how little most of the others care for her as a person. Jacuzzi's Gang: Like with Claire, Chané is initially bewildered by Jacuzzi and company's kindness towards her; they do not seem to want anything from her like the Lemures did, nor do they want to use her like her father. They continue to be nothing but sincere toward her, and she gradually realizes that she thinks of them as friends—and accepts their feelings and actions are genuine. For someone whose relationships until now have been utilitarian, this relationship—one built on reciprocity, on mutual love and trust and respect—is one entirely new to her. Chané becomes fiercely loyal to her new 'family' and is determined not to let harm befall them. If a member of the gang is in danger she will immediately rush to their defense, as seen when she rushes to protect Fang Lin-Shan from Maria Barcelito in 1933. Trivia *The name Chané means "oak-hearted" in French. **She treasures her given name as it is what Huey Laforet (Chané's father) calls her by and the name her absent mother gave her; considering the name the only link they have, she feels a sense of connection to her mother through her name into her young adulthood. *Chané's surname Laforet means "the forest". **In addition, she is loath to ever abandon the surname Laforet that she and her father share. * Chané shares similarities with Celty Sturluson, a character from Ryohgo Narita's light novel series Durarara!!. ** Both characters are mute and communicate via the written word. Category:Characters Category:Lemures Category:Jacuzzi's Gang Category:Female Characters Category:1930s Characters Category:Mortals